The evidence is in. Physical exercise is a medication free activity that you can do on your own. The media continues to tout its powers. A recent Newsweek article discusses how exercise can make you smarter. A current Yahoo.com article claims that exercise can grow new brain cells that alleviate depression. There is ample research that indicates exercise helps reduce anxiety and improves self esteem. It also helps you look and feel better.

Exercise can also help you discover your soul and utilize it to heal emotional pain.

What exactly is your soul? It is your higher self, a place inside where the voice of wisdom resides. It is non-judgmental and the place where true faith comes from. It is the place that holds the truths about life. It is a place they we are taught lives solely outside of ourselves when it actually lives inside and outside of us. Some folks also call the soul the psyche others call it God.

There are studies that indicate that you can attain the calmness that exercise brings in as little as fifteen minutes of activity. Once you reach this state of calmness, you are able to face emotional pain that seemed too frightening while being sedentary.

This calmness can open your heart to your soul. You will notice when this occurs because the solutions to your problems that seemed so elusive now appear as clear, relieving, and solid.

Some of the kinds of emotional pain that exercise can lead our souls to heal are: numbness, depression, and stuck grief.

Numbness is often experienced after some trauma such as a break up with a loved one or the loss of a job occurs. You feel stuck and emotionally constipated. At some point you want to feel something, but emotions are currently an intellectual construct that holds no real meaning.

When you are early into your workout, you notice the stress of everyday living lift and float away. You ask yourself, “Why do I feel so numb?” You notice that you are in touch with your soul because you feel safe and therefore ready to face this question. You learn that you feel numb because your boyfriend’s abrupt breakup with you and that you have been afraid to feel how sad you feel. While you are exercising, you allow the tears to flow and you realize you are on the road to healing.

Depression occurs for a variety of reasons. Some experts claim there is a genetic link to it and therefore it runs in families. Others say that if you live in an environment where others are depressed, you will be become disheartened as well.

Regardless of the cause, depression is a real problem and can be lessened by connecting to your soul.

One of the hallmarks of depression is hopelessness and therefore it takes a lot of encouragement to make the first step towards exercise. This encouragement needs to come from within and one suggestion is to visualize how good you will feel during and after your workout.

Once you get on track and start working out, you will find a place inside you where you can begin to unravel the mystery of your depression. You may find that it is due to a broken heart or you may learn that you have never learned to deal with adversity before.

Your soul will allow a ray of sunshine to warm the coldness of your being and by asking questions about your depression, you will chip away at your despair and you will become more joyful.

Stuck grief occurs when you have lost a loved one through death and a year after the loss, you still are overwhelmed with the raw pain you felt in the early stages of mourning. This type of grief prevents you from going forward with your life.

When you are exercising, you will discover this tranquil place inside. You can then ask yourself, “Why is it so difficult to work through the pain of my partner’s death?”

You will realize that you have had difficulty releasing the pain because you believe that letting go would be disloyal to the memory of your loved one. Your soul will lead you to ways you can let go of all the anguish and still be loyal to your partner.